Will.i.am Creating an American Idol for Science and Tech Nerds

Will.i.am Creating an American Idol for Science and Tech Nerds

The Black Eyed Peas celeb wants to inspire science geniuses.

Published September 19, 2012

Will.i.am is ready to combine his passion for science and technology with the television entertainment world. The Black Eyed Peas rapper and producer is putting together a new reality competition show, which will seek out rising talent in the science and tech fields.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Will made his pitch while speaking at Amsterdam's IBC technology conference last week. The music star said that the talent pool for powerhouse vocalists on shows like American Idol, The X Factor and The Voice isn't as vast anymore. Instead, he feels it's time for a show that could find the world's next Steve Jobs or Mark Zuckerberg, a plight that top companies like Google and Microsoft are looking to fulfill.

"Every year, companies like Google need more innovators, but there is no content celebrating them," he said to IBC attendees, according to the U.K.'s Broadcast. "The system thinks people are dumb and they don't care. We have no desire to make them care. We need creative people working with broadcasters, making smart content to inspire people to be geniuses."

And that's exactly what Will.i.am plans to do. While there hasn't been a pilot ordered for the show yet, he's already talking to broadcasters and "fine-tuning" the show. Just last month, he teamed up with NASA and the Curiosity Rover to release a special song on the planet Mars and support a space education program for students. The making of that project has been turned into a documentary called Reach for the Stars, and will premiere on Discovery SCIENCE.

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